Back in 2005, when the first lawsuits were filed over the Grand Theft Auto hot coffee mod, I wrote:
Me, I’m just amused by the thought of class action attorneys trolling for a named plaintiff parent who will testify that, while she was okay for her little Johnny to buy a game involving drug dealing, gambling, carjacking, cop-shooting, prostitution, throat-slashing, baseball-bat beatings, drive-by shootings, street-racing, gang wars, profanity-laced rap music, violent homosexual lovers’ quarrels, blood and gore, and “Strong Sexual Content,” she is shocked, shocked to learn that the game also includes an animation at about the level of a Ken doll rubbing up against an unclothed Barbie doll with X-rated sound effects…
Alas, Take Two games has given in to the blackmail and settled the case, but a sense of how frivolous it was can be seen from the following deposition excerpt of lead plaintiff Brenda Stanhouse, a schoolteacher in Belleville, Illinois, who will receive $5000 for her role in the litigation. Recall that Mrs. Stanhouse is alleging she was defrauded because she would not have bought a game that could be modified to include “pornography,” but take a look at pp. 67 ff. of the deposition, where she makes clear she didn’t have the faintest idea what was in the game that she did buy. Readers: type your favorite Stanhouse deposition excerpts in the comments.
8 Comments
Geez, mine’s right on page 52…
Q: Do you remember any other ratings?
A: No.
Q: As you sit here today do you remember any other ratings?
A: Yes.
Out of respect for the decency of this web site, I will soften my language.
I esp. appreciate the excerpt about being beaten to death with a sexual implement which rhymes with fill-doe. đŸ˜‰ Knowing this I will now have to go and buy this game.
Is this for real? This woman is a teacher? I don’t even know where to start. She seems to have no idea what her son is doing. She aparently has no problem with the violence in the game, it’s the sex that offends her. I’d like to know how many “R” rated movies she has taken her son to. This suit is just plain BS.
Whenever I hear the words “Belleville, Illinois” I reach for my revolver.
The only surprise here is it wasn’t the Lakin firm representing her.
depo of a wealthy investor in failed tech company:
Q have you ever testified as an expert in court?
A Yes, as an expert in building retention walls.
Q What qualifies you as an expert in building retainig walls?
A 30 years of building retaining walls.
Q Good answer.
Apart from the various ways a player could kill someone in the game, the two sections that stood out for me…
——
Q: You’re aware that certain stores won’t sell rated M games to people under 17?
A: I — yes.
Q: And is that the reason why you purchased the game for your son because he was not able to purchase it for himself?
A: Yes.
——
And then the section where Stanhouse admits that she didn’t really read the complaint before signing it/it was filed. *sigh*
Hell I have all the installments of this game, and as an adult have had fun with it……but I guess I am more involved with my kids. If they want a game I check out the reviews first and decide if my son is mature enough to understand that it is A GAME.
What will the Overlawyered Game be rated when it comes out?